Testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee, July 12, Consumer Electronics president and CEO Gary Shapiro told lawmakers that a hard date for analog switch off is a “win-win” for all stakeholders.

A firm deadline for cessation of analog TV transmission will “foster innovation” and “strengthen out national security,” he said, referring to the portion of the reclaimed bandwidth that will be used for emergency first responder communications.

While some television viewers will lose service when the transition to digital is complete, the number of disenfranchised viewers has been “exaggerated,” he said. Shapiro told lawmakers a recent survey revealed 87 percent of the 110 million U.S. TV households are receiving local and national broadcast programming via cable or satellite. Additionally, 32.7 million or the 285 million TV sets in the country are being used to receive over-the-air TV transmissions.

The cut-off of analog TV service will “have only a small practical impact on the viewing habits of the vast majority of Americans,” he said.

The FAA’s current rules and proposed ban on flight over people, requirement of visual line of sight and restriction on nighttime flying, effectively prohibit broadcasters from using UAS for newsgathering. ~ WMUR-TV General Manager Jeff Bartlett